Preparation and Supercapacitor Performances of Porous Carbons from Anthracene-Oil Based Hyper-Cross-Linked Polymers

Abstract

Anthracene oil (AO), a coal tar distillate with a condensed aromatic structure, is a promising carbon precursor owing to its high carbon content and reactivity. However, its low carbonization yield limits practical applications. Herein, a hyper-cross-linked polymer HCP3 was synthesized via Friedel–Crafts alkylation with AO as monomer and AlCl3 as catalyst, followed by KOH activation to prepare porous carbon H3AO. The obtained H3AO featured a high specific surface area of 3591 m2 g–1, a micropore volume of 1.15 cm3 g–1, and an average pore size of 2.09 nm. In a three-electrode system, H3AO delivered a specific capacitance of 354 F g–1 at 0.5 A g–1. The assembled symmetric supercapacitor exhibited an energy density of 7.8 Wh kg–1 at 125 W kg–1, with 100% capacitance retention and Coulombic efficiency after 10,000 cycles at 5 A g–1. This work provides an efficient strategy for high-yield AO-based carbon preparation and offers a high-performance electrode material for supercapacitors.